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    Autonomous quantum heat engine enabled by molecular optomechanics and hysteresis switching

    Baiqiang Zhu1, Pierre Meystre2, Weiping Zhang3,4,5,6,*, and Keye Zhang1,4,†

    • 1Quantum Institute for Light and Atoms, State Key Laboratory of Precision Spectroscopy, School of Physics and Electronic Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China
    • 2Department of Physics and College of Optical Sciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA
    • 3School of Physics and Astronomy, and Tsung-Dao Lee Institute, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
    • 4Shanghai Branch, Hefei National Laboratory, Shanghai 201315, China
    • 5Shanghai Research Center for Quantum Sciences, Shanghai 201315, China
    • 6Collaborative Innovation Center of Extreme Optics, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, Shanxi 030006, China

    • *Contact author: wpz@sjtu.edu.cn
    • †Contact author: kyzhang@phy.ecnu.edu.cn
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    Phys. Rev. A 112, 043508 – Published 8 October, 2025

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/v66j-6fv4

    Abstract

    By integrating molecular optomechanics with molecular switches, we propose a scheme for a molecular quantum heat engine. If the molecular switch is effectively classical, the engine operates autonomously through hysteretic feedback, without external driving or modulation. However, this description needs to be revisited and modified in the case of a fully quantum molecular switch. Through a comparative analysis conducted within both semiclassical and fully quantum frameworks, we reveal the central role of quantum tunneling and quantum correlations in the operation of this advanced molecular machine in that regime.

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    Phys. Rev. A 112, 043508– Published 8 October, 2025
    • Received 5 November 2024
    • Accepted 2 September 2025
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